A Pair of Glasses
by In One Breath
Summary: The school dance for sixth graders is coming up. With only one year before his decommissioning, Wally tries to impress Kuki...while wearing a pair of glasses. Only there's another guy trying to do the same.
1. Stars

Wally cupped his hands, catching a few drops of rain. They dripped off the sides and fell to the ground, the grass quickly absorbing it. His hair began to get very damp, and he pulled his orange hood up on his head, shielding the water from his face for awhile before he tilted his head up. Small patches of grey cotton candy littered the sky. He gazed at the stars, which were a little dull looking, and he had to strain his eyes to make out each one. He sighed, burying his face into his arms.

"Stupid, cruddy villains...who needs them? Why do they always have to show up and ruin everything? I've already tried to tell her eleventy billion times." Wally curled his knees up to his chest and pulled a pair of glasses out of his pocket. They were his own pair. He never liked them, although when they were on his face, they were practically invisible, due to the pale coloring of the rims. He just didn't like glasses. Only the nerds wore those things. However, he would love to put them on when he was alone. They made him feel smarter, in a sense, and besides, they improved his vision. After he slipped the round frames onto his face, the stars seemed to perk up, and the light they cast caused him to rub his eyes for a moment. The moon was not visible, though, because the clouds were blocking it from his angle.

He had just come back from a mission with his team. Knightbrace had released his wrath once more, and this time, he had tried to put braces on kids with teeth that were out of position. Apparently, his tools had been upgraded, and he had slapped braces and assorted headgear on Numbuh Two and Numbuh Five. The others were lucky, and they only had their teeth brushed, which was still horrific, but in the end, Knightbrace was all taken care of. Wally had attempted once again to tell Kuki he adored her, but a toothbrush was inserted in his mouth before he had the chance to utter such special words.

"Ah, who needs her," he tried to convince himself. "She's just a girl." He blinked from behind his glasses, inhaling a breath of cold air. "She can't mean anymore to me than, say, wrestling, o-or comics..."

Wally sat still for a couple minutes, and thought about Kuki. He was possibly the only friend he really had. Numbuh One and Numbuh Two were his friends, yes, but he couldn't tell them things like he could with her. To him, she wasn't just a girl. She was friendly, and thoughtful, and he was very reluctant to the fact that he would have to forget all about her in just a year. The clock was ticking, and he was scheduled to be decommissioned by the time he reached the seventh grade. Kuki would be decommissioned three months later. It would mean that he would never feel the same way about her again. In a way, he would start his life over.

"I'm so stupid!" he yelled, smacking his hand on his forehead, which knocked his hood back a bit. "I'm an idiot, and even these glasses can't hide that. I can't pretend I'm someone else. I'll never wear these cru--"

"I like your glasses," a tiny voice murmured, and surely enough, Wally could make out Kuki Sanban's bright green shirt. Her head was left uncovered, and she appeared to be very cold and drenched with rain. He wanted to invite her to sit down with him and watch, with great admiration, the small, crystal drops falling from the heavens, and draw her close to him, whispering the words he had longed to say to her for so long. He couldn't bring himself to do it. He was still a kid, and he couldn't imagine himself doing such things. According to everyone else, only teenagers and adults fell in love. It was gross when you were a kid.

For a few moments, he could only stare at her, in what turned out to be a glaring contest between the two. Wally blinked first, and pulled his hood over his face. "Go away."

After she didn't respond, he had thought he had hurt her feelings, and once again longed to squeeze her hand and tell her he was sincerely sorry. "Wally, I came to bring you the newsletter. For school, I mean. I put some Tons of Fun Science Teacher Rainbow Monkey stickers on it, and I hope you don't mind..." Kuki handed him the soggy paper, the ink barely readable. Her fingers clutched a Rainbow Monkey she had brought along, and her eyes appeared to be a bit forlorn. Wally hated to see her so sad, but all he could do was read the paper she had handed him.

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. "A...a party? You mean to say that _our _school is going to have a party. Why?"

"Well, actually, Matthew suggested it to the school council, and they agreed instantly. It's hard to explain." Kuki stepped closer to Wally, and he soon realized that she looked very different tonight. Her hair had been pulled back in a ponytail, and the sleeves on her shirt had been adjusted so they were cuffed. Obviously, she had been expecting someone to be here. Perhaps her wondrous, incredible, super-hero. Matthew Baterwhield.

Matthew. How he dreaded the sound of his name. He just seemed to pop out of nowhere one day, and everything that Wally did, he did better. He was smarter, stronger, older, taller. And he loved Kuki. The few times that Wally had worked up the courage to tell Kuki that she looked very pretty in a new dress, Matthew went up to her and screamed, "Wow, you look hot!" Of course, being slightly dim-witted, she fell for Matthew, and was very interested in everything he did.

_So, if Kuki has a little crush on Matthew, why can't I have a little crush on her? Love is so complicated._

"Um...it's a dance, really. You know, a school dance. Boys ask girls, though."

Yuck.

"I don't want to go to some girlie dance! Everything's going to be full of pink flowers and junk." He pouted and crossed his arms across his chest, with his legs stretched out. He resembled his toddler brother during a temper tantrum.

"Please, Numbuh Four? I really need someone to go with, and I can't go until you ask me." Kuki frowned, squeezing her Rainbow Monkey even tighter. Her knuckles were white from gripping it so hard.

"Why don't you ask your precious Matthew? He thinks you're smoking hot, remember?" he yelled. "I don't want to go to a lame dance, and that's final!"

Kuki blinked sadly, and cast her gaze down to the grass. "I understand, Wally."

"Yeah, you better--wait, what?" He turned his head slightly to look at her in confusion.

With a sigh, she picked a blade of grass, and mumbled, "I thought you liked me. A lot. Not like you would like me as a friend, but that you would like me, like me as a...crush. You know. But I truly understand. You think Matthew and I would be the perfect couple."

_Oh, snap. Look what you've gotten yourself into now, Beetles. _

"So, I agree. Matthew's really cute and he likes me a lot, so I'll just ask him to the dance. He's so sweet, he could be my boyfriend! Ooh, ooh, maybe he'll ask me to marry him tomorrow, he loves me so much! I wouldn't be surprised if he wants to have kids with me, and I would totally agree. Hmm, how does Mrs. Baterwhield sound to you? Or Kuki Baterwhield? Thanks so much for helping me!" She threw herself on him in a tight hug, a smile spread across her face. Her partner, though, was pale and trembling.

"NO! Please, please, please don't ask _him_! Fine, I-I'll go to the cruddy dance with you. Just please don't go with Matthew." Wally looked like he was about to cry.

"Gotcha," she snickered, letting him free.

There were a few seconds of silence before he got into a huge fit of screaming and cursing. Kuki just laughed and said, "I can't believe you fell for something that stupid!"

"I hate you, you know that."

"I know."

Wally sighed. "Don't do that again, Kuki. You scared the crud outta me."

"So, you'll do it?" Kuki exclaimed happily.

"Yeah, whatever," he muttered. The clouds had moved on, and the moon was now shining brightly above them. Even the rain was letting up, although a few streams still trickled down. Why did every perfect moment have to be ruined by something dumb?

"That's great," she mused, and skipped up to Wally, a huge grin on her face. Much to his surprise, she pecked his cheek with a light kiss. "See you soon!"

And with that she left. Wally, however, stayed in the same spot, a smile plastered on his face, where he sat until the stars began to fade into the morning light. As soon as the sky changed colors, he picked himself up, walked a mile and a half back to the tree-house, and ran up the stairs to his room, where he collapsed onto his bed, with a silent breath of relief. Maybe he still had a chance at impressing her. Maybe his glasses did make him smarter.


	2. Good Morning?

He was reluctant to wake up at the required 7:00 a.m. time that Numbuh One had inflicted on the tree-house. Obviously, Numbuh Four was exhausted from spending all night at the field, and he had only gotten two hours of sleep. Numbuh One was usually very punctual, but he was known to be forgiving at times, and besides, as long as he had an extra hour of sleep, he would be fine. So he smashed his alarm clock with his fist.

In his dreams, he wasn't one to dream about Kuki in a romantic manner, or with any hearts surrounding them or other mushy stuff like that. He refused to dream about "girlie" things, like hugging or kissing. Usually, his dreams consisted of Kuki and himself playing one-on-one soccer with each other. He would be the goalie, and she would be the offensive player. All their concentration was on the ball, shifting their position every time it jerked in another direction. Numbuh Three wouldn't even aim the soccer ball. She would just giggle and smack it as hard as she could, which was actually very hard. The ball would randomly go flying somewhere, and Numbuh Four would slap his forehead and run after it. Most of the time, she would end up making a goal after a few tries, and he would simply say, "You got me again, Kuki! How are you so cruddy good?"

In this dream, he had his glasses on.

Numbuh Four was starting to see that his glasses weren't so bad after all. What was once a huge blur was now precise, defined, and easy to see. He had pulled out a book from his backpack earlier that morning and put on his magical frames and realized that the words were much easier to read. Of course, he couldn't read the entire thing, due to how tired he was, but he enjoyed reading the first few sentences of it, even though it was one of Numbuh Three's Rainbow Monkey romantic comedies. Besides, Numbuh Three had been ranting on and on the other day about how guys with glasses always appealed to her. If anyone dared to call him a nerd, he decided he would punch them in the eye, and if that didn't work, he would run away screaming. Everything was going to work out.

Until, of course, a certain British KND operative interrupted his beauty sleep.

"Numbuh Four!" Numbuh One screeched over the intercom. "Could you please get up without us dragging you out of bed, for once? The morning announcements have already been delivered, and only fifteen more minutes remain for breakfast. We won't have anytime to stop by the Moon Base before school starts."

"Oh, that sounds peachy," Numbuh Four yelled back. "We have school _again_, and before that, Numbuh 86 gets to boss us around? What kinda torture are you puttin' us through?"

Silence lingered throughout the tree-house, and with a groan, Numbuh Four pulled himself out of bed. After getting dressed into his jacket and jeans, he carefully picked up his brown, leather glasses case from the floor, and extracted his silver frames. He cleaned him with a sheet of toilet paper from the bathroom, trying his best not to scratch the lenses, and put the pair of glasses on while he wandered out of his room. Grudgingly, he arrived at the kitchen, where the other operatives were sitting down, eating bowls of sugary cereal. He followed their lead, and slouched his back as he walked to the cupboards to get a bowl and spoon.

"Hey, Numbuh Four, you look a little tired. Long night?" Numbuh Two said with his mouth full. "The mission wasn't that long really, but still..."

"I kinda stayed up," he sighed, sitting down at his usual spot, "so don't get on my nerves today."

"Maybe you should take the day off. Numbuh Five doesn't think you're looking so good," she said.

"I'm just tired," Numbuh Four yawned, attempting to pour cereal in his bowl, thus spilling it all over his place-mat. He rolled his eyes, and swept it into the bowl. His hood was pulled over his face, which was one of the reasons why he spilled the cereal in the first place, but he didn't want to show off his glasses just yet. Being as tired as he was, however, he accidently brushed his hood backwards, revealing his blonde hair and four eyes.

"Ooh, Numbuh Four! That's so cool that you decided to wear your glasses today! They look really shiny." Numbuh Three always sat next to him, due to the fact that their assigned numbers were so close together, so she was the first to notice Numbuh Four's spectacular spectacles. Most of the time, being seated so close to her and getting to talk to her without the others listening in was a benefit, but today, he might as well have screamed into a megaphone to tell her to shut up. He would have loved to have done such a thing, but he knew that one pair of glasses wouldn't draw so much attention...right?

The three other kids dining at the table and reviewing papers became very alert of his face. Numbuh One dropped his pen, Numbuh Two dropped his spoon, and Numbuh Five dropped her mouth. All four operatives were now examining Numbuh Four with a peculiar expression on each of their faces.

"Um, wow," Numbuh One exclaimed. "You are wearing glasses."

"Since when do you have glasses?" Numbuh Five questioned.

He narrowed his eyebrows. "So what if they're cruddy glasses? I like 'em. They look cool. Haven't you heard about the new things in style lately? Glasses. Yep, that's right, glasses are the coolest things around, and I happen to have my own _personal _pair." His eyes darted around the room, and he pounded his fist on the table. "Got it?"

"Easy there, Numbuh Four," Numbuh Two said, picking up his spoon again. "We were just a little...shocked. I mean, you're not the kind of person to wear glasses."

"Aw, they look so _adorable _on you, Wally! You're just like a little Ready To Learn Rainbow Monkey doll!" Numbuh Three cooed, pulling his glasses harshly off his face. "Let me try them on," she squealed as she placed them right above her nose.

"No, Kuki! Don't touch the lenses! I just cleaned them! Erggh..." he groaned, since Numbuh Three had already gotten multiple fingerprints on them.

"Wow, my eyes hurt! Everything is kinda blurry," she giggled, moving her head left to right.

While Numbuh Four attempted to snatch his frames away from her, Numbuh One cleared his throat and changed the subject. "Well then, that's important news, I suppose. Now that we have covered our current list of adults who are devising new plots against our video games and television, I feel that, although this is a dreadful topic to discuss, we really need to revise our upcoming decommissionings, approximated." The entire room fell silent, all the operatives now thinking sad thoughts in their minds, as they knew the day would have to come someday.

"I will review the scheduled dates. Now, remember, Numbuh 362 said that she can try to keep us from having our memories completely wiped out, but it would still be against the traditional KND rules, and it might not be successful anyway, so I wouldn't get your hopes up. The current order is Numbuh Five, Numbuh Two, Numbuh Four, Numbuh Three, and myself. Numbuh Five, I regret to inform you that your thirteenth birthday is in only eight months, and Numbuh Two, yours is in eleven. Numbuh Four, your twelfth birthday is in a week, which means you still have about a year before you are decommissioned. Numbuh Three, you have another fifteen months until decommissioning, and for myself, I have eighteen months remaining." He sighed. "I don't know how I'll be able to cope without my original team, but I'm sure I'll figure out some way to bear it."

"Now, don't be down on yourself, Numbuh One," Numbuh Five said soothingly. "We still have a lot of months to go until Numbuh Five's decommissioned." The other nodded their heads in agreement, although sulky looks remained on their faces.

"Abby," Numbuh One smiled, "I do wish that I was the one being decommissioned first, and you were the leader. I'm certain you could take up the responsibility."

Numbuh Five opened her mouth to comment, but just shook her head, crossing her arms. "Maybe I'd consider it, but I'm not positive."

"Make up your mind soon." He winked at her, and began rambling on again about more important announcements for the day. No one was really paying much attention, but they gave him a nod every once in a while to make him believe they were interested. Numbuh Four, being as delightfully dimwitted as he is, decided to interrupt his leader mid-sentence to ask a question.

Numbuh Four wiped his glasses off with his napkin, and put them back on his face. "I wonder what it'll be like to be twelve. Is it fun?"

Numbuh One groaned and slapped his forehead.

"It's okay," Numbuh Five admitted. "Things could be better, since Numbuh Five's getting closer to turning thirteen and all. There isn't much difference between eleven and twelve once you think about it. But there's still some things that change when you're twelve."

"Like what?" he asked, continuing to eat his dry cereal. He had never really liked putting milk in his cereal. It made the milk full of pieces of grains and sugar.

"Well, you can't order off the kiddie menu anymore at restaurants," Numbuh Two said slyly, a spark in his eyes that seemed to light up the whole room. In just a few seconds, everything seemed to be lighthearted again, and the darkness in the room was replaced with a lively bunch of eleven and twelve year old kids.

Numbuh One's watch began to beep. "Uh-oh. Looks like we're behind schedule," he said blankly. "We don't have time for any playing right now, we'll have to fly straight to the Moon Base and receive our new orders." Understandably, everyone retorted with annoyed remarks. "Yes, I know, we'll try and get to the arcade during lunch break if we can, forbidding we don't have to deal with any adult tyranny today."

Which obviously made everyone groan more, because when have the Kids Next Door ever had a day without villains?

"Crud," Numbuh Four muttered. "Crud, crud, _crud, _cruddy CRUD!"

"What is it?" Numbuh Three asked. She had picked up his backpack for him, so she thought maybe it had something to do with that. "Is it a bad color?"

"No! I forgot to plan how I'm going to torture Matthew today."

Of course, he was joking. Well, sort of. All he knew was that he didn't want Kuki to be swept off her feet again by some guy...and that's how his plan began to form. His plan to impress Kuki in just one year.

(Flashback in next chapter, for you confuzzled, people.)


	3. Popularity

"_Hello, _Matthew." A small voice was heard echoing through the hallways. Even though it was his new school, since he had only just started sixth grade a few weeks ago, he felt dominant over the entire place. Sure, he was a few inches shorter than most of the other sixth grade boys, but it didn't matter to him. However, a bump in his way, known as one of his rivals, was ready to tear down his confidence.

"Hello, Wallabee," a dark-haired boy exclaimed. "You know you can call me Matt, right?"

"So long as you call me Wally."

Matthew Baterwhield chortled, "Oh, that's hilarious! Wally...it sounds so feminine. No offense."

Wally's hands clenched into fists, but his face remained smiling. "You're right, Matt! And yours sounds like a cruddy floor rug, don't it? I'd love to just come home on a rainy day and wipe my feet off on your face...no offense."

"And this is the same kid who get an F in all his classes? Why, I'm rather surprised," Matthew retorted, imitating Wally's Australian accent.

Wally decided to remain silent. There wasn't anything he could say about Matthew. Matthew always made the A and B honor roll, he was a basketball jock, and he was outgoing, otherwise known as an attention grabber for eleven and twelve year old girls. Everyone thought he was the perfect role model for kids like Wally, yet behind everything, he was just a big bully.

"Where's your girlfriend?" the jerk asked. "You know, your beloved _Kuki _that you never let me even talk to."

"She's not my girlfriend!" Wally yelled. "She's just my friend, and the reason _you _can't talk to 'er," he pouted, pointing a finger at Matthew, "is because you're just going to make her _your_ girlfriend as soon as I let you."

Matthew laughed, and began to walk toward his homeroom. "So what? In case you haven't noticed, Beetles, your friend is a very attractive girl. She may not be popular with the guys right now, but I could make her into one of the most desired girls in the sixth grade."

Wally trailed behind him, anger pasted all over his face. He couldn't believe what Matthew was going on about. How could he even suggest turning his best friend into a popular girl? She was just fine the way she was right now, as his friend, and only his.

While he pondering this, Matthew suddenly stopped in his tracks. "Besides, she'd probably be out of _my _league, I could make her so popular. If you want, I can leave her in my 'popular' group, which is about where she is right now, but hey, I wouldn't want to destroy your feelings, eh? You wouldn't want a repeat of last year, would you?"

That got his attention.

**-transmission interrupted-**

**-transmission temporarily replaced with previous footage-**

_"Oh, come now," Matthew urged, "The teacher's late. Let's just do one Spin the Bottle spin, and whatever the dare is will be what entertains the entire group until she comes back." He was always a leader. Stopping the other whining kids from destruction of the classroom was his job. He had to keep everyone in line, if no one else would do it. Sure, there were a couple other boys who took control every once in a while, but Matthew wanted to be the supreme._

_"Okay!" Kuki agreed. She dug into her backpack and pulled out a small, plastic yogurt drink container. "Sorry, this is all I have," she said sheepishly, "and I kinda need it for lunch."_

_"It'll do," Wally grunted, yanking the bottle from her, slapping it on his desk and giving it a quick spin. He wanted to get this game over as soon as possible. He hated the way Matthew was looking at Kuki. It made him want to vomit._

_"Hey, Wally! It landed on you!" Sometimes, Kuki's peppy attitude was a little bit unnecessary._

_"Looks like you're our entertainment for the morning, Beetles," Matthew yawned._

_"Ah, crud," he muttered. _

_"You have to pick dare," Matthew reminded him. "I'll pick your dare, if you don't mind."_

_"Oh, I mi--" Wally was cut off by a glare from Kuki, and most of the other kids in the class, who were about ready to collapse from boredom._

_"Good, good," Matthew said as he clapped his hands together. "I dare you...to let your girlfriend kiss someone of her choosing."_

_"WHAT? Kuki can't--I mean, I ain't got no girlfriend," he blushed, sinking down into his chair._

_"Yes, I meant your friend, Kuki Sanban. It seems only fair that you follow the dare, since you did spin the bottle." Matthew winked at Kuki, who gave a small smile back._

_"IT'S PLASTIC, YOU IDIOT!" Wally cried._

_All the students began to giggle, and covered their mouths so their "leader" couldn't scold them for it. "Kuki," Matthew mumbled, aggravated. "Who do you want to kiss? And it can't be Beetles."_

_"Well, can I kiss Wally?" she questioned, being a tad bit air-headed again._

_"No. You can not kiss Wally, Wallabee, Wally Beetles, or Wallabee Beetles. Or Numbuh Four," he added, smirking at his victim. Wally just sulked._

_"Can I kiss you?" Kuki asked. Wally grew very pale. He did not like Matthew one bit. How could Kuki ever suggest to kiss him--of all people?_

_"Sure," Matthew said, fake surprise in his voice. _

_"I--I don't know how to kiss."_

_"Well, Kuki, you just turn your head like this," he said, not noticing that the rest of the class was hiding their eyes, grossed out by everything. "And you hold my hand like this, and..."_

**-end footage-**

**-transmission continuing-**

"Just because you kissed her doesn't give you the right to make her popular," Wally complained. The bell rang, and a few students ran through the halls to get to their class.

"Oops, looks like I'm late for class, Wallabee," Matthew grinned, a twinkle in his light blue eyes. "We'll discuss this later." And with that, he walked to his class, never once looking back at Wally.

Kuki passed him too, but she didn't seem to pay much attention to him. Why couldn't he just go up to her and kiss her like Matthew had done? It didn't look that hard. But would he be risking his friendship with her?

"Wait, Kuki!" Wally called, running to catch up with her.

"Hi," she breathed. "I'm a little late for class."

"Me too," he said, "but I wanted to ask you something."

"What?"

"Oh, uhm, do I look better without my glasses?" he asked, and slipped his glasses on. "Or with?"

"You're adorable either way," she simply replied, giggling a bit. "Come on, Wally, let's walk to class together!"

As they both walked to their homeroom, which was the same one, although he received a little more attention due to his lack of common intelligence, he thought for a minute. What if Kuki liked him more than Matthew? That would definitely be fun to rub in Matthew's face. And what of the upcoming school dance in a couple weeks?

"Ugh, why'd I have to like Kuki? She's so complicated to like--"

"Wait, what?" Kuki said, shocked at what she had just heard.

"Oh, nothing," Wally said, his face flushed.

"You said something."

"No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did."

"No, I didn't."

"Uh huh!"

"Nuh uh!"

That's why Wally had decided that they made a perfect couple.


	4. Simplicity

He had returned to the field, and once again it was dark. The rain had past several hours ago, but the grass was still damp, and his clothes became soaked on contact. He pulled out a comic book that he had brought along, put on his glasses, and began to read, despite the lack of light. The comic was actually a book that he had written and illustrated in full color. It had taken him almost a year, but it was now completed, and he was the only one allowed to read it. Kuki had tried to steal it from him one day, but he screamed at her, so she backed away, her eyes big and coated with salty tears.

It was sort of manga, and sort of traditional cartoon style. Sure, some drawings were too big and sometimes the ink was smeared, but overall, it looked very presentable. Perhaps you couldn't sell it in a comic book store, but maybe it would have taken off at school. The story was about a sweet, yet powerful girl from Japan who met a burly, but lighthearted Australian boy, and they teamed up to create the perfect crime-fighting duo. Maybe the reason Wally didn't want anyone to read it was because of the slight romance moments in it between "Paul" and "Suki".

When he began drawing the first romantic page, he was very nervous. He didn't want it to look bad, or gross, and he certainly didn't want anyone smart enough to read it, because they might catch on to who Paul and Suki _might _be based on. In the end, however, he had created a scene that was probably identical to the real thing. The perfect kiss that he and Kuki would never have.

Wally flipped through it, having memorized all 50 pages of the comic. He stopped at page 28, the page he hated most, but one that reflected how he was feeling right now. All the words in the book had been spellchecked, due to his lack of love towards grammar and spelling. Now all he had to do was read it.

_They were stranded in the middle of the ocean, water up to their necks. When they fell under, it stung their eyes with a burn that could be only described as excruciatingly painful. Paul Needles turned himself to Suki Kanban, a soft look in his eyes._

_"Well, here we are. There ain't nuthin' we can do 'bout it."_

_Suki nodded, and clung to his arm. "What do we do now?"_

_He froze, and smiled at her. "I know we're just friends right now, but, um...we...could kiss."_

_They both blushed, despite the freezing temperature of the sea, and leaned closer to each other, their lips nearly touching. _

_Out of nowhere, a strange whirring sound began to vibrate the waves, and they pulled apart before their mouths met. "What the crud is that?" Paul muttered._

_"I think...it's a boat. Yes, it's Bart's boat! Oh, Bart, you got my call?" she yelled over the sound of the motor, as the boat approached the couple. Paul sneered. Bart Materwhield was Suki's ex-boyfriend. Why did he have to show up so suddenly? Well, at the very least, he could save them from drowning, and maybe Suki would later realize that she wanted Paul, not Bart._

_"That's right, babe. I'd go out to sea for ya any day," he replied, failing to acknowledge Paul's presence. Suki giggled, and as she grabbed onto the starboard side of the boat, Bart took her hands, pulled her up, and swept her off her feet into the air. Then, he dipped her down, as if they were dancing, and he began to kiss her._

_And all Paul could do was watch helplessly._

He groaned, and smacked the comic book shut. Sure, it was only one or two pages, but the fact that it was based on his life to begin with made him very angry. It was a love triangle, that was for sure, and Kuki was the very root of it all. He almost felt like it was a war to capture her attention and woo her over. Matthew was winning. Wally was losing. Big-time.

Wally yawned, and lay down on the grass, spreading his arms out and stretching his toes so that they were as relaxed as possible. He had to get his mind off of her. Rolling the comic up and tying it with a rubber band, he tried to think of something else. Platypuses. He liked kangaroos and platypuses. He decorated his locker with stickers and articles from _National Geographic Kids_ with them. Even Matthew couldn't make him dislike those animals, but he was teased constantly about it.

"Eh, Wally?" he had said the week before. "Maybe I was wrong. Maybe you don't like Kuki."

Mmhmm. You know what he said next. The torture of being paired with a kangaroo was not only disgraceful and sickening to Wally, but he was also being ridiculed about his culture, which was enough to get him to slap Matthew across that pretty little cheek of his that was probably kissed by a hundred girls. So maybe he got a couple hours of detention. It was worth it to see Matthew shut up for once.

Of course, thinking about his bully made him wander back to Kuki. He loved her. When he started to like her, back when he was still a newer member of the KND, he wanted to believe that liking her was a huge fairy tale. She was the fair princess, and he was but the humble prince. They were the perfect match. As time passed, Wally began to realize that no book was perfect. There always had to be a problem and a plot, and fiction is supposed to imitate real-life, so obviously, his love for her could not go without a problem or two. Lately, they might as well have been Romeo and Juliet, and he would have thought that they were until he noticed that neither of their fathers could care less.

Alas, his thoughts were interrupted by his watch beeping at him. It was Numbuh One, probably calling in to check on him. He had lost track of the time, despite the fact that he had a watch right under his nose (honestly, how stupid could you get, he thought), and he might be needed for an evening mission.

"Numbuh Four, do you read me?" Numbuh One spoke sternly and seriously.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm here. What's the problem?"

"Kuki--ah, Numbuh Three's gone missing. We've searched the entire tree-house, and we've tried calling her watch, but she's not answering. We thought she might be with you. Is she there?"

"No, she's not," Numbuh Four answered, surprise printed in his voice. "I thought she went out tonight to go shopping with 'er school friends."

"Something has to be wrong if she's not answering her watch. Numbuh Four, would you mind taking your evening off to investigate where she is? I'd rather have an exact location on her before being forced to guess for the entire night. I would trust you with the Code Module, but I don't think this operation would get too serious. If you can't locate her within the hour, page me and I'll retrieve it from the Moon Base." Numbuh One began to scribble notes down in a book.

"Copy that, Numbuh One," Numbuh Four said, signing off, and picked up his comic book. This mission couldn't be too hard, could it? "I mean, how hard could it be to find Kuki?"

He searched the roads. He searched the sidewalks. He searched the mall. He searched a hundred houses. He searched _everywhere. _Before he knew it, an hour had past, and he was required to call Numbuh One and request the Code Module to track her. Wally groaned, and pulled on his hood to protect his ears from getting frostbitten. "She ain't here...where is she?" Kicking a pebble off the sidewalk, he passed the movie theater. "She's not in there. I'm sure I checked there." He blinked. "Wait, did I check there?"

Wally pushed the doors open, and pulled his G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A. out, surveying the area. He ran up to the counter, and looked at the list of movies. If Numbuh Three really was here, he would have to pick the right theater to get into, and he only had enough money for one movie ticket. That seemed to be a no-brainer. There was only one Rainbow Monkey movie showing this week. He paid for his ticket, and put his back against the wall. He peeked around the corner, and soon ran into the theater.

The movie appeared to have recently started, but popcorn and snacks already littered the floors, some from careless people and some from previous showings. Wally ducked in and stepped down the stairs. He flicked on the built-in flashlight in the gum ball gun, and shed some light on the darkened room. No Kuki here. He snuck between rows of seats, avoiding crushed popcorn and pools of soda, and checked every seat. This went on for a while, and it was enough torture to have to cover his ears in disgust from the movie that was playing. As he was getting ready to check the last row, he recognized a familiar head from the back. The hair was of an ebony hue, and it seemed to have an arm draped around a girl with hair of the identical shade. She turned her head to grin at him, and he exchanged the look with a kiss on her cheek.

Wally wanted to aim the G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A. for the seat in front of him and fire it with a hundred gum balls. Although he vowed to never cry over a stupid thing like a girl, hot tears were hidden behind his glasses. Why could he never get what he wanted? He shakily turned on the video phone in his watch and called Numbuh One, lowering the volume. "N-numbuh One? I've found Numbuh Three."

"Very good. Where is she?"

"She's at the movie theater." His eyes drifted up to the movie screen, a large purple talking monkey singing a song about the snow.

"What is she doing?" Numbuh One asked.

He glared at Matthew. "She's on a date," he snarled.

"With you?" Faint snickering could be heard in the background.

"No."

"Oh. I'm terribly sorry, Numbuh Four."

"Ah, forget it," he said, wiping his face with his jacket sleeve. "Anything else you want me to do? I'm still free tonight, because no one asked me out on a date." Bitterness coated his words, a sour taste left in his mouth even after he said them.

"Well, I do have a couple things lined up, but if you would prefer to keep Numbuh Three company and escort her home, that would be fine as well."

"I'd rather not. I'm sure that's Matthew's job, anyway," Numbuh Four sighed. He walked back to the aisle where Kuki and Matthew where sitting, occasionally gazing at the movie, and occasionally gazing at each other. He sat in the empty seat to the left of them, which was right next to Kuki.

"You know, I think you should relax. Why don't you call me up when Numbuh Three is ready to go home, and take her back to the tree-house?" Numbuh One suggested. He appeared to be very concerned about Numbuh Four's rash behavior.

"Whatevah," Numbuh Four grunted. He switched off the watch, and glanced over at Kuki. She had not acknowledged his presence yet, the same way Bart had not noticed Paul in his comic. She appeared to be content, and held Matthew's hand firmly. Matthew actually seemed peaceful, for once, rather than worked up in a complex like he usually was.

Wally slid his G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A. back into his backpack, and looked up at the Rainbow Monkey movie. He rolled his eyes, and stared once again at Kuki. Her left hand was holding a soda cup, and every time she bent her head over to sip some pop, her lips pursed very lightly, her teeth clenched the straw, and sucked up the sugary liquid. It was a normal task, but Wally seemed to be fascinated by it. If he moved his own lips onto the straw at the same time she did...

Too late. She had put the cup into the cup-holder, and now her left hand was free. He smiled before rubbing his eyes again, and reached his right arm out, taking her hand. Before he knew it, her left hand was holding Wally's hand, and her right hand was holding Matthew's.

She didn't even notice. Kuki continued to watch the movie, no longer looking at Matthew. Her eyes were fixed to the color displays on the screen, and that was all she cared about right now. How was it that he was so mysterious, but Kuki was so simple? Kuki glanced over at Matthew, who genuinely smiled at her. He really did like her, but then again, he also liked every other girl in the school. Kuki didn't know. She was oblivious to the entire world. Then, she turned her head slightly in Wally's direction. His heart skipped a beat.

_Uh-oh._

She completely turned her head to Wally, gazing at him with large eyes once again. However, she was not surprised, only content. Today was possibly one of the most peaceful days of her life. Her right hand broke free of Matthew's, who gave her a strange look, and she leaned over to Wally, and embraced him in a hug.

It caught him off-guard, but he enjoyed it, although it was short-lived. "Sorry for ruining your date, Kuki," he apologized, not really meaning it, of course.

"You didn't ruin it, you only made it better," she giggled, taking his hand again. He gently held it, like he was guiding a baby's hand. She was hesitant to give Matthew back her right hand, but then she decided to take it, and he gratefully took it with a tight squeeze. Wallabee didn't mind as much that she was holding Matthew's hand, so long as she was holding his, and in his tiny brain, only one thought came to mind:

_Yes._

_xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo _

_Hey everyone! I don't usually post notes at the bottom of the story, but I'd just like to thank you all for reviewing, and I'm really glad you like it. I know, in the last chapter, I messed up on that "spin the bottle" game, because traditionally, when you spin the bottle, you kiss whoever it lands on. Well, I wasn't thinking. So I crossed Truth or Dare and Spin the Bottle into one game. Truth or the Bottle? Hmm... Also, I'd like to inform you of some changes I'll be making considering the story._

_Genre will be changed from Romance/Humor into Romance/Angst_

_Rating will be changed to T, just in case! It's getting really hard to write for pre-teens/teenagers while keeping it K+. _

_And I actually might draw the comic page that Wally reads in this chapter, so if you want to see decent art, that might be something for you to look out for._


	5. Pain

The brown watch on Wally's dresser began to beep, meaning that there was a caller. He had always thought it to be cool that his watch had a built-in communicator, complete with video and audio displays, but when he was in the shower, he didn't think it was fun to run out the bathroom half-naked, only to find that he had missed the call. He grumbled to himself when it happened once again, and wrapped his orange towel, blazed with a red "4", back around his waist.

Wally sighed, and walked back to the bathroom, careful not to leave wet footprints on the floor. He stood in front of the mirror, which was cut off at his chest. Now that his twelfth birthday was approaching in just six days, his body had changed along with his age. Although his face wasn't full of zits, he still suffered from one or two of the annoying dots, and his hair was a little bit harder to comb these days. He had only gotten taller by two inches, and practically, that was all that the pre-teenage years had hit him with so far. Scrubbing his face with a rag, he turned to face the wall. Behind that wall, Kuki was probably getting ready for bed as well. How he longed to bust the wall with a hole and tell Kuki what a great night he'd had the previous day, despite the fact that all he had done was hold her left hand.

He actually tried to punch the wall, but it didn't work in the slightest, and his fist began to throb wildly. "Crud!" he yelled, biting his lip to avoid a string of curse words from releasing themselves. As he sat on his fist to ease the pain, his mind set out words, hoping that she could hear them:

_Kuki, I want to see you again..._

On the other side of that wall, Kuki was brushing her hair with a rainbow colored comb. She had dressed herself in her traditional nightgown and the last thing she had to do was brush her teeth...like she was going to do that. Pfft. She heard a faint pounding noise once, and then Wally screaming out something she couldn't decipher, but it sounded like "Mud!" Kuki grinned and set her comb down. Silly Wally, always being stupid. It was a wonder why she liked him.

She sat down on the counter, pulling out her toothbrush and staring at it. She didn't just like him as a friend, although she had made it pretty obvious to everyone that she thought Wally was her "best friend". He was her super-hero whenever she was feeling upset, and he pleased her even when she didn't deserve it. He kept her sane, in a sense. Kuki glared at the wall, hoping that a laser beam charged from her burning passions for him would shoot out of her eyes and drill a hole through it, but there was no way that she could reach him that way. Unless an emergency came up, the KND operatives were not allowed to venture out of their rooms into others, especially of the opposite gender, after certain hours.

And then there was Matthew.

Sure, he had a crush on Wally, but Matthew was incredible. The things he did for her to make her feel wanted and accepted...she couldn't count them all. Matthew had a huge crush on her, and Kuki was slowly beginning to like him back. The two boys didn't seem to get along, she noticed. So how could she ever explain to them that she liked them both? She had tried to send them a message by holding both of their hands the night before at the movies, but Matthew hadn't seen Wally sitting next to her, and she was certain that while Wally had seen Matthew, he had probably taken the message the wrong way.

Maybe she should just break both their hearts and never have to deal with this problem again.

"Right," she groaned, sarcasm clear in her words. "That's a perfectly good plan."

She flopped onto her bed, and attempted to fall asleep, but within a few seconds, she was awakened by the ringing of her black video watch, and she jumped out of her short-lived slumber to answer the call.

"Hello?"

"Kuki, hi!" Matthew said on the other side of the phone. "Listen, I was wondering about a couple things."

"...okay." Kuki sat down on her bed again.

"Well, we had such a good time last night at the movies, so I was wondering if you'd like to go to the dance with me? You know, the one that _I _suggested?"

"Oh, sure," she smiled, full of enthusiasm.

"Great. And, uhm, I keep trying to call Wallabee, but he's not picking up. Do you know his phone number?"

"Here, why don't I just give Wally the phone? He's in the room right next to me anyways."

"Uhm, that's...cool, I guess," Matthew retorted.

Kuki jumped out of bed again and ran outside her room, fuzzy slippers on her feet. She barged into Wally's room without knocking, and for a brief second, she admired his room. Her eyes wandered from the ceiling high above her to the wrestling ring that served as a bed. She was amazed at how different the room was from her own, and she wiped a finger on the wall, leaving a trail where dust used to be. _Still the same slob as before, _she grinned. She glanced down to the watch, where Matthew was watching her expectantly from his own video phone, feet propped up on a table and a remote control in his hands. "Um, listen, Matt, can we talk first?"

"Of course, Kuki-san," he chuckled, hoping to impress her with his love of Japanese endearments. Kuki was always mesmerized by manga art, but she never seemed to have a very large collection of the comics. Perhaps her allowance didn't provide enough for both Rainbow Monkeys and comics. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Well...us, mainly."

"I see," he pondered. "Are we, like, dating or what?"

"I don't know," Kuki answered promptly. She sat on Wally's bed, thinking that he might be sleeping and if she sat on him, he'd wake up. It was a good plan, but he wasn't asleep, so she dropped the idea. "Should we go on more dates first? I mean, you know we're still in the sixth grade, so we don't have to go out to eat and stuff. But going to the park or the mall would be nice."

"Agreed. Kuki, you know I'd take you as my girlfriend any day." He winked at her.

"Aw, that's so sw--" Her thoughts were interrupted from a loud shriek coming from the bathroom door.

"Kuki! What're you doin' in 'ere?" Wally's cheeks were flushed, due to the fact that his chest was bare, and his towel wasn't tied properly on him. "I nevah said you could just come in like that." He stomped over to her, grasping his towel for dear life. "Who're you talking to?"

"Me," Matthew responded in a monotone voice. He seemed to have become less than thrilled about Wally's sudden appearance. "I was talking. To my girlfriend."

Kuki glared at Matthew, and mouthed something not-so-sweet to him, yet it passed through him unfazed. "Well, Wallabee," he said, "since my chat with my _girlfriend _is now over, I need to discuss things...with you."

All of their faces turned pale when Wally dropped his towel, but he quickly gathered it up again, narrowing his eyebrows. "Quit staring at me," he muttered, "and whatever, just make it quick, okay? I have to get dressed."

Kuki covered her mouth to keep from giggling, and Matthew rolled his eyes. She handed Wally the watch, and remained still on his bed, looking at the towel that covered from his stomach to his legs. Wally paced himself to the dresser, but before he opened a drawer, he turned himself to her. "Nice try, Kuki, but you ain't ever goin' to find out if I wear Rainbow Monkey boxers. Leave."

She smirked, and used her two fingers to give him the gesture that meant she was watching him, trotting back to her room. Now that she was gone, Wally threw her watch on the bed, resulting in Matthew yelling that it was dark on his screen, and he opened the drawer his hand was closest to. His underwear were not in this drawer. His collection of photos of Kuki were stowed away beneath a gigantic plushie of her. He picked up the phone from his bed, pushing it close to his face. "Read it and flippin' weep, Baterwhield." He turned the screen of the watch to the drawer, revealing his once-secret items.

"Like I care if you have a stuffed doll of her," Matthew spat. "Kuki is mine."

"So possessive of you," Wally chuckled, taking out the oversized doll and placing it inside the wrestling mat. "Y'know, to say that she's an item of yours. Just like my doll, huh?"

"Shut up. You're going to regret it if you don't. I will personally come over to your house, break into your room, and give you a pretty little black-eye. Unless you preferred a shade of red?" Matthew dropped the remote he was holding. "Give it up. I've already asked her to the dance, so don't even consider doing so yourself. She's agreed."

"Y'know what? I'm _flippin' _tired of ya. I thought ya had a somewhat kinder side of ya when I was at the movies last night and saw ya acting all nice around 'er. Now I realize that yer just the same cruddy pest from the fifth grade." Wally's eyes were now focused on Matthew's slightly ruffled hair, otherwise known as 'his darling locks, the shade of a thousand midnight skies, without a star in sight', as Kuki described it.

"Thank you much," Matthew smirked. "I've been dying to hear a compliment like that for a while now. Sure, my other two estranged girlfriends _always _phone me from Montana and France, but ever since they've moved, it hasn't been the same. Y'know what I mean, Wallabee," he chortled. "Not enough people to praise you. Although I don't know why _anyone _in their right minds would praise that hideous face of yours."

"Love you too. Yeah, I kinda figured ya were cheatin' on Numbuh Three anyways, but thanks for confirming it."

"If you tell her, I'll make your life hell."

Wally moaned. "I figured you'd say that. Okay, I won't tell 'er. But she's goin' to find out soon if one of yer girlfriends comes to visit."

"Unfortunately, you're right. Ellen is coming back to Cleveland for a few hours during the school dance. She comes to visit all the time, mostly once a month, since she's a member of that Kids Next Door of yours, and she usually takes a KND transport device of some sort. I already asked her."

"How in the world to you plan to take two girlfriends to a dance?"

"I'll figure it out." Matthew's eyes shifted suspiciously. "Well! This has been a rather interesting chat, wouldn't you say, Wallabee?"

"You're going to break her heart," Wally mentioned, as if it were a simple task that Matthew was to do, like he was reminding him that his basketball game was the next day or his dry cleaning was to be picked up.

"Talk to you tomorrow! And remember, don't tell a soul...or I'll take yours."

Wally gaped at the phone.

"Well, maybe that sounded a bit harsh. But the point is, if you tell her, I'd never live it down, and I'd make sure you'd be in the same position." Matthew cackled, and clicked off the phone, leaving Wally with a black screen that said "End Transmission". Wally changed into his one-piece pajamas and climbed into a comfy spot, gripping his Kuki doll with white knuckles. He tried to close his eyes and fall asleep, but once his eyes were closed, all he could think about was what Matthew had said to him.

_"If you tell her, I'll make your life hell."_

Shuddering was the last thing he did before nodding off, and the last image he saw in his mind was Kuki's face, coated with dried tears, still and unconscious.

_xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo_

_Answering reviews:_

_-EHWIES: Glad to hear it. I like angst too. xD  
_

_To everyone:_

_As you have noticed if you've been reading, Matthew's a cheater. Heh. Well, I'm giving you the opportunity to be the second girlfriend from France, since Ellen's the first one from Montana. I have no idea why you'd want to be Matthew's girfriend...but if you'd like to, just mention in your review what name you'd like me to use in the story and if your character is part of the KND or not. Preferably not, since Ellen already will be, but I might change my mind if I like your name. x) Working on Chapter 6 right now, so I need your reviews!_


	6. Planning

"Five more days until the dance, Numbuh Four!" Numbuh Three squealed. "Isn't that awesome?"

Numbuh Four could feel a sweat drop on the back of his head, like in all the mangas he drew.

"My birthday's in five days, not the cruddy dance."

She stared at him. He was holding a video game controller and trying to beat Numbuh Two on a new system. So far, the game had been pretty even, until Numbuh Three had called out for the billionth time what the date of the school dance was. Numbuh Four groaned when his player got beat in a one-hit KO, and swiveled around to face her.

"Your birthday's on Friday?" she asked.

"Yeah, so?" Out of the corner of his eyes, he watched Numbuh Two to make sure he didn't start a new game without him.

"Well, so's the dance, silly!"

"Um...cool. Listen, Kuki, about the dance. I don't think I want to go. I mean, aren't you already going with Matthew?" he said, choking on his name. Ever since his call from Matthew had taken place, pictures erupted in his mind of Kuki feeling depressed and lonely. At first, he shrugged them off, but after a while, he began to get scared, and he decided that if he didn't go to the dance, maybe he would feel better. He never wanted to go, anyway. Mushy-gushy wasn't his style.

"Oh, crud," she groaned. Numbuh Four raised an eyebrow at her. He didn't like people using his favorite word, and most of the time, they did it to make fun of his accent. "I forgot that I asked you! Now I have to go to the dance with you and Matt."

He suddenly remembered that Ellen was going to be coming around the time of the dance. If Matthew greeted both of them, what would happen when both of them stepped in the gym and declared that they were both his escorted ladies?

"Ah, why don't you call off plans wit' Matthew? I mean, why'd you wanna go out with such a sleazeball anyway?"

Numbuh Three's eyes trailed to the ground, avoiding eye contact with Numbuh Four. "C'mon Wally...you know I can't do that. I made a promise to him."

"You didn't make no cruddy promise," Numbuh Four said, gripping the controller as Numbuh Two started up a new game. "All you told 'im is that you'll go. You can always change 'er mind."

"But I like him!" Kuki cried. "I like him and I _want _to go with him!"

Wally felt a pain in his stomach, like he'd eaten too many nachos and swallowed 5 gallons of root beer on top. He looked up at Kuki, so forlorn and distant, and suddenly wished he didn't exist. He was causing her so much pain...

"Kuki, it's hard to explain. But ya have to. Look, Matthew's a pretty boy, okay? Undaneath everything, he's shallow. And he's mean. You don't _like _mean guys, do ya?"

Numbuh Three sat down next to Numbuh Four, and took the controller out of his hands and rest it on the floor. Numbuh Two got the cue that gaming was over for the day and gave his fellow operatives a sad glance. Then Numbuh Three turned to face Numbuh Four. She looked uncomfortable.

"Wally, Matt's always been nice to me."

"Yeah, but after he calls you hot, and his girlfriend, what's left? Kuki, there's nuthin. He's a jerk. He wants you to get you away from being my friend," Numbuh Four said. For the first time in a long time, he felt he had actually said something right.

Numbuh Three sighed. She made a face like she just gave up and surrendered in a huge war. "Maybe. Maybe he's like that. But how can you prove it?"

Numbuh Four shrugged. "I dunno..."

A lightbulb popped over Numbuh Four's head.

"Wait...no, I do know! Kuki, I 'ave the perfect plan!"

He whispered it into her ear, feeling a tingle go down his spine as strands of her hair brushed along his face, but he ignored it because he was so proud of his idea. When he was done telling her, she grinned.

"Okay, Wally, if you can do that, I'll believe you. But it sounds so hard! Are you sure we need to do this to get his attention?" She stood up and turned the video game off, with the little bounce in her step returning.

"Absitively posolutely," Numbuh Four said. He smiled.

"Okay, if we have to..." Numbuh Three giggled. He blushed a deep red just from the sound of it. "I'll go to my room and get my Rainbow Monkey Bananaberry Lipgloss."

Wally pulled on his orange hoodie and laughed, embarrassed, and as soon as Numbuh Three left, he shoved his hands in his pockets and wondered what his first kiss would be like.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_hey everyone! i'm back! i really wanted to finish this story because i think this story has some of my best writing. and i did it when i was like 10! omg. haha. this chapter's kinda short, but i hope you like it!_

_UPDATE: thanks so much for the reviews! i just want to warn you guys that i haven't watched knd for a loooong time so if i'm inaccurate about some things, it's just because of that._


	7. Worried

Numbuh Three skipped to her room, giggling and swinging the sleeves of her oversized green sweater. She and Numbuh Four had decided that she would make Matthew jealous by kissing Wally, and then when she left the scene, she would hide and see what Matthew would say to him. It was all planned out and secretly, she was getting excited from the thought of kissing Wally. Even though she couldn't get the memory of Matthew's lips touching hers out of her mind.

She passed Numbuh Five, who suddenly reached out and grabbed her shoulder. "Hey, Numbuh Three, Numbuh Five's gotta talk to you."

Numbuh Three cocked her head to the side. "Okay?"

"Alright. You know all this stuff going on between you and Numbuh Four?"

"Uh, what stuff? There's no stuff, nope, nothing. We're just bestest friends!" Numbuh Three said, twitching. She laughed nervously.

"Mmhmm. Well." Abby took a deep breath in and fixed her hat, thinking of her sister as she did. "I hate to be the one to say it, but Numbuh One isn't liking it. He's starting to worry that you're becoming a teenager...early."

Numbuh Three's eyes opened wide, and she panicked. "No," she said, her voice hoarse. She reached in her pocket and pulled out a compact mirror that was decorated with Rainbow Monkey stickers and stared back at her face. She did look a little older than she had a few months ago. But was she really turning into a teenager before she even turned 13? "But I'm not," she whined. "I'm not even 12 yet."

"Maybe you're not one yet, but you sure are acting like one. How many times have you kissed a boy already?"

Numbuh Three blushed. "I dunno...a couple times. I kissed Matthew Baterwhield last year. And I'm pretty sure I've kissed Wally before."

"See, this is Numbuh Five's point!" said Numbuh Five, raising her hands up above her head. Numbuh Three started walking to her room, and Numbuh Five followed her. "Kissing is a teenager thing. If you've already done it, that means you're acting older than you should be." She wanted to go on, but then she saw the pained look on Numbuh Three's face, and she stopped. "Listen Numbuh Three, it's not a big deal. Just think about what you're doing. Okay?"

She nodded, biting her lip. Numbuh Five patted her on the back and left, leaving her all alone outside her room door. Numbuh Three opened the door and stepped in, not in the mood for skipping anymore, and began to rummage through her drawers for her lip gloss. She felt terrible now. She really didn't want to be acting like a teenager. But Matthew was so wild...every time she stared at his dark hair and entrancing eyes, she felt like doing things she never would have even _thought _of doing with Wally.

She took a step back from her drawer and peered on top of her dresser. Her video watch phone was beeping, saying she had an incoming call. From Matt.

Part of her was in no mood to talk to him. After all, _he_ was the reason why she was acting so much like a teen. But another part of her felt like she had to answer. So she did.

"Hey Matt," she said, forcing a smile.

"Hey Kuki! How are you doing?" Matthew looked even more handsome, which made Numbuh Three feel even more crappy.

"Okay. I have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"You haven't been being mean to Wally, have you?" Numbuh Three strapped the watch on her wrist and looked at Matthew's face sadly.

Matthew seemed shocked by this. "What? You mean Wallabee?"

"Yeah. Have you been teasing him and stuff?"

Matt smiled. "Not at all."

"Oh. Cause he said you were being a jerk," Numbuh Three said, feeling a bit more relieved.

"Come on Kuki, would you listen to any of those rumors? He probably just made them up because he's jealous."

"Yeah..." Numbuh Three paused and looked at Matthew again. He seemed honest, and a comforting little smile was on his face. She smiled back, and she felt a whole lot better. "I guess so."

"So listen Kuks, I was thinking, could you meet me at my house in a little bit? I have a present to give you. You'd really enjoy it." Matthew ran his fingers through his hair, and she had to resist the urge to stare with her mouth hanging open.

"Sure," she said.

"And don't bring Wallabee."

"Okay."


	8. Danger Zone

At 5:00 pm on the dot, Kuki stood in front of Matt's house, with her hands shoved in her pockets. Wally wasn't with her, since she had listened to Matt. And she felt terrible because she hadn't even told him she was going over to Matt's house...or even that they wouldn't get to kiss.

So he was still sitting in the game room. Alone. Waiting for Kuki.

God.

However, she had put her lip gloss on, and she had put a little bit of mascara on. Maybe Numbuh One and Numbuh Five were right. She was turning into a teen. But she was wearing it for Matthew. Before she left, she had a flashback of one of Matt's old girlfriends from the 5th grade that moved to Montana. She was a beautiful, platinum-blonde girl with emerald eyes that just popped out, and every time she passed by, you could tell she was wearing too much makeup. And that was in the the 5th grade. Kuki tried to imagine her a year later and came up with the word "Hollywood". But Matthew liked it, and for the whole time that he and Kuki had been going out, he constantly said, "I think you'd look _really _hot in lipstick. Or a miniskirt." Kuki thought he was crazy if he thought she was going to wear a miniskirt for him, so she settled for lip gloss.

A few minutes later, Matthew came out. Then sun was already starting to set and the way his face was bathed in golden sunlight made him look amazing. She smiled as he walked up to her.

"Hey Kuki," he said. He kissed her on the cheek and she blushed. She sniffed him, and smelled something odd, but she ignored it. "I'm so glad you came." His eyes looked over her shoulder, probably looking for Wally, and he seemed glad she was alone. "You ready for your present?"

"Uh-huh," she said.

"Okay, let me show you what it is." He took her by the hand and pulled her along with him, taking her down the street. She laughed and ran alongside him. They both ran together until they reached a busy road, then they stopped and crossed together. She looked at Matt and felt so thrilled. _What was Wally thinking when he said all those things?_

After a while, they reached the beach of a nearby small lake. Numbuh Three knew well enough that during the fall, the lake was way too cold to swim in, but a lot of teenagers brought their boyfriends and girlfriends to the beach to have picnics and just hang out. It was deserted today, probably because it was a school night, and no one dared to go on a school night.

Except for Matthew.

He didn't bring any picnic blankets or baskets. But he had brought his backpack. He sat down on the grainy tan sand and gestured for Numbuh Three to do the same. Matthew coughed, then he pulled something out of his backpack. She gasped, and all of a sudden, her happiness level fell.

It was a pack of cigarettes.

He opened the top, which was already opened before, and he took out two. He stuck one in his mouth and reached in his backpack for a lighter. As he did, he offered her the other one.

She just stared at him. Matthew Baterwhield, her dream guy, alluring and adorable at the same time, _smoked? _He was only 12, and she was only 11. It didn't even make sense. But he seemed so confident, like he'd done it a million times before. This was definitely not what she'd had in mind for tonight, but if Matthew was doing it...

He began to look annoyed. "Are you gonna take it or not?" he asked through the corner of his mouth. She pulled her hair out of her face and clenched her teeth. Then she took the cigarette and shoved the tip of it in her mouth. Matthew smiled, and he found the lighter and lit both of their cigarettes. She winced her eyes as the flame came close to her face. She sucked in, not sure what to do, and instantly regretted it. She started coughing madly, gasping for air. Matt just shrugged. "First time's the hardest," he said, blowing a puff of smoke in the air.

When she finally stopped coughing, she realized that her lip gloss was smeared, her eyes were red and watery, and she felt like she was about to throw up. She threw the cigarette down and squashed it with her foot. Matthew frowned and gave her a questioning look.

"C'mon Kuki, was it really _that _bad?"

"Yes," she said, dabbing at her eyes. "It was horrible."

"O...kay." Matthew sighed and put out his own. "Come here babe," he said, opening his arms out.

Kuki fell into them, resting her head on his shoulder. She would forgive him for it. It was her fault for taking the cigarette anyway. She had just wanted to please him. He ran his hands up and down her back, and she felt a lot better. The silence was nice, and the sunset was beautiful. Until Matthew spoke again.

"Where's your bra strap?" he asked blatantly.

"What?!" she said, pulling back.

"Your bra strap," he repeated simply, like it was the easiest question in the world.

"I don't wear a bra," she snarled.

"Oh," he said. He sounded disappointed, and suddenly a thought raced through Kuki's mind.

_Maybe Wally was right._

_Maybe Matthew is a jerk._

So Kuki got up, and started to leave.

"Kuki? Baby, where are you going?" Matt looked back at her and got up to follow her.

"Shut up Matthew. I'm leaving, and I'm calling Wally on my phone to come get me." Kuki glared back at him and stomped off.

She was glad she did.


	9. Repair

_haha thanks for all your input jgog132. it was really great to read! and don't worry, wally will have his revenge:_

_and btw, sorry that this chapter is so short! i promise i'll do a longer chapter soon!_

Wally stared at his watch beeping. He was so spaced out, he wasn't even connecting the fact that it was ringing and he should answer it. He just couldn't believe how Kuki had torn him down. Three hours ago, he was giddy with anticipation for his first real kiss with the girl he'd been in love with for so long. Now, he was lonely.

Finally, he snapped back to reality and answered it. He was sure he looked like a mess, but he didn't care anymore. About anything. "'ello?" he mumbled to the watch.

"Wally! I'm sorry, really sorry!" It was Kuki, and she was panting. He could see tears at the corners of her eyes, and suddenly he sprung into action.

"Kuki? What's wrong?" he asked nervously.

"Oh my gosh...Wally...you were right. You were so right and I didn't listen to you, and I'm so so sorry."

"Yeah...wait, what was I right about?"

Kuki gave him a look that said "you idiot" without intending to be mean. "Matthew! Matthew is such an...can I say it?"

"Sure."

"HE'S SUCH AN ASS!" she cried out. "I went with him to that little beach on the lake, you know it? And he gave me a cigarette! Then, when I hugged him, he was trying to see if I had a bra strap so he could snap it! And then when I left to try to call you, he actually ran after me and he pushed me up against a wall and tried to kiss me! He's such a...such a..."

"Sleazeball?" Wally said, tiredly.

"Yes!" Kuki said. "Ugh. We are over. I'm telling him first thing tomorrow morning."

Wally's ears perked up to this. "Really?"

"Duh!" Kuki actually smiled, and Wally felt better. "And by the way, I think I owe you more than an apology. Can you meet me in front of the treehouse when I get back? I was going to ask you to pick me up, but it's okay."

"Uh, sure," Wally said. His heart flipped over, and it kept doing somersaults as he stared at Kuki's face. She was so beautiful. Matthew didn't deserve her.

"Okay!" Kuki started singing, "Rainbow Monkeys, Rainbow Monkeys, oh so very round, and super chunky..."

"Ah Kuki...ya know I hate that song!"

"Then why is it the first song on your iPod?" she asked, smirking.

Wally's eyes opened up wide and he laughed. "I'm gonna tackle you when ya get back! Ya little sneak," he said.

Kuki giggled and blew him a kiss. "Love you, Wally," she said, then she hung up. And the familiar white words blinked, "end transmission".

First he smiled a little bit, then a little bit more, until his grin was so wide it reached his ears. Kuki liked him. She had to. And she hated Matthew. He was _better _than Matthew for the first time ever.

He couldn't believe how lucky he was.


End file.
